"After Hours" is a 1969 song written byLou Reed[3] and originally performed bythe Velvet Underground, "about a timid person watching others having fun and wishing they could join in".[4] It is the tenth and final track on theirself-titled third album.[5] It is one of few songs with lead vocals by drummerMaureen Tucker, as Lou Reed stated the song was "so innocent and pure" that he could not possibly sing it himself. Tucker's vocals are accompanied by acoustic and bass guitar. The style of the lyrics and the music is somewhat reminiscent ofTin Pan Alley songs of the 1930s.[2]
In 2014,Universal Music Enterprises held a contest in collaboration with Genero to create an official music video for the song.[6] From 120 submissions, the video by Choking Monkey Productions, directed by Oliver Chen and starring Paloma Lopez, was picked as the winner and subsequently uploaded to the Velvet UndergroundVevo YouTube channel.[7][8]
Meg White ofthe White Stripes covered the song on December 31, 2000 to conclude their New Year's Eve concert and was available as a limited release byThird Man Records as Vault Package #44.
Rilo Kiley also recorded a version in 2002 for a split EP.
James Iha performed the song withA Perfect Circle on January 31, 2004 on a tour in France afterMaynard James Keenan challenged Americans in the audience to not use flash photography.
Eddie Vedder performed the song during thePearl Jam North American tour of 2013 as a tribute to Lou Reed.
ActressFlorence Pugh performed the song, accompanying herself on piano, in the opening sequence of the 2023 filmA Good Person, written and directed byZach Braff.
